Pokémon (video game series)

Pokémon Pokémon series logo
Genre(s)	Role-playing game
Primary developer(s)	Game Freak, Creatures Inc.
Primary publisher(s)	Nintendo
Creator(s)	Satoshi Tajiri
Website	Pokémon-Games.com

The Pokémon video game series is a series of role-playing video games developed by Game Freak and Creatures Inc. and published by Nintendo. First released in 1996 in Japan for the Game Boy, the franchise has continued with at least two new games for each Game Boy generation; games are commonly released in pairs, each with slight variations.

Nintendo stated that the Pokémon franchise has sold over 175 million units as of April 23, 2008.^[1]

Generations

The original Pokémon games were Japanese role-playing games (RPGs) with an element of strategy, and were created by Satoshi Tajiri for the Game Boy. These role-playing games, and their sequels, remakes, and English language translations, are still considered the "main" Pokémon games, and the games with which most fans of the series are familiar.

All of the licensed Pokémon properties overseen by The Pokémon Company are divided roughly by generation. These generations are roughly chronological divisions by release; every several years, when an official sequel in the main RPG series is released that features new Pokémon, characters, and gameplay concepts, that sequel is considered the start of a new generation of the franchise. The main games and their spin-offs, the anime, manga and trading card game are all updated with the new Pokémon properties each time a new generation begins. The franchise is currently in its fourth generation.

The Pokémon series began with the release of Pocket Monsters Aka and Midori for the Game Boy in Japan. When these games proved extremely popular, an enhanced Ao version was released sometime after, and the Ao version was reprogrammed as Pokémon Red and Blue for international release. The games launched in the United States on September 30, 1998. The original Red and Green versions were never released outside Japan.^[2] Afterwards, a second enhanced remake, Pokémon Yellow, was released to use the color palette of the Game Boy Color and more of a stylistic resemblance to the popular Pokémon anime. This first generation of games introduced the original 151 species of Pokémon (in National Pokédex order, encompassing all Pokémon from Bulbasaur to Mew), as well as the basic game concepts of capturing, training, battling and trading Pokémon with both computer and human players. These versions of the games take place within the fictional Kanto region, though the name "Kanto" was not used until the second generation. Spin-off first-generation titles include Pokémon Pinball, an adaptation of the Pokémon Trading Card Game for Game Boy Color, an on-rails photography simulator for Nintendo 64 titled Pokémon Snap, a Nintendo 64 Pokémon-themed adaptation of Tetris Attack, Pokémon Puzzle League, a 3D Nintendo 64 incarnation of the handheld RPGs' battle system, Pokémon Stadium, and a co-starring role for several species in the Nintendo 64 fighting game Super Smash Bros..^[3]

The second generation of Pokémon video games began in 2000 with the release of Pokémon Gold and Silver for Game Boy Color. Like the previous generation, an enhanced remake titled Pokémon Crystal was later released. It introduced 100 new species of Pokémon (starting with Chikorita and ending with Celebi), for a total of 251 Pokémon to collect, train, and battle. New gameplay features include a day-and-night system (reflecting the time of the day in the real world) which influences events in the game; full use of the Game Boy Color's color palette; an improved interface and upgraded inventory system; better balance in the collection of Pokémon and their moves, statistics and equippable items (a new addition); Pokémon breeding; a new region named Johto and the ability to select the protagonist's gender. Unique to the second generation games is the fact that, after exploring Johto, the player can enter and explore the original Kanto region, which lies to the east of Johto. Spin-off second-generation games include the Game Boy Color adaptation of Pokémon Puzzle League, Pokémon Puzzle Challenge; a Nintendo 64 pet simulator, Hey You, Pikachu!; the Pokémon Stadium sequel, Pokémon Stadium 2, for Nintendo 64; several Pokémon mini-games for the e-Reader and a co-starring role for several Pokémon species in the Super Smash Bros. sequel Super Smash Bros. Melee for the Nintendo GameCube.^[4] The Pokémon mini was a handheld game console released in December 2001 in Japan and 2002 in Europe and North America.

Pokémon entered its third generation with the 2003 release of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire for Game Boy Advance and continued with the Game Boy Advance remakes of Pokémon Red and Blue, Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, and an enhanced remake of Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire titled Pokémon Emerald. The third generation introduced 135 new Pokémon (starting with Treecko and ending with Deoxys) for a total of 386 species. It also features a much more visually detailed environment compared to previous games, a new 2-on-2 Pokémon battling mechanic, a special ability system applying to each Pokémon in battle, the Pokémon Contest sub-game, and the new region of Hoenn. However, this generation also garnered some criticism for leaving out several gameplay features, including the day-and-night system introduced in the previous generation (it had to be removed due to internal battery save problems), and it was also the first installment that encouraged the player to collect merely a selected assortment of the total number of Pokémon rather than every existing species (202 out of 386 species are catchable in the Ruby and Sapphire versions). Third-generation spin-off titles include Pokémon Pinball: Ruby and Sapphire for Game Boy Advance; Pokémon Mystery Dungeon for Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS; Pokémon Dash, Pokémon Trozei! and Pokémon Ranger for Nintendo DS; Pokémon Channel and Pokémon Box: Ruby & Sapphire for Nintendo GameCube; and a separate RPG series for Nintendo GameCube, consisting of the games Pokémon Colosseum and Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness.

In 2006, Japan began the fourth generation of the franchise with the release of Pokémon Diamond and Pearl for Nintendo DS. The games were subsequently released in North America on April 22, 2007 and in Australia on June 21, 2007. The game was then later released in the UK and Europe on July 27, 2007.^[5] The fourth generation introduces another 107 new species of Pokémon (starting with Turtwig and ending with Arceus), bringing the number of Pokémon species to 493, the current total. New gameplay concepts include a restructured move-classification system, online multiplayer trading and battling via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, the return (and expansion) of the second generation's day-and-night system, the expansion of the third generation's Pokémon Contests into "Super Contests", and the new region of Sinnoh, which has an underground component for multiplayer gameplay in addition to the main overworld. Also, a new entry to the Diamond/Pearl generation, called Pokémon Platinum, was announced in May 2008's CoroCoro.^[6]
Currently, spin-off games in the fourth generation include the Pokémon Stadium follow-up Pokémon Battle Revolution for Wii (which has Wi-Fi connectivity as well^[7]) and a co-starring role for Pikachu, Jigglypuff, Lucario, and a Pokémon Trainer (who uses Squirtle, Ivysaur and Charizard for fighting) in the 2008 Wii fighter Super Smash Bros. Brawl.^[8]

Game mechanics

Main article: Pokémon game mechanics

Starter Pokémon

Main article: Starter Pokémon

One of the consistent aspects of most Pokémon games—spanning from Pokémon Red and Blue on the Game Boy to the Nintendo DS game, Pokémon Diamond and Pearl—Pokémon Battle Revolution is the choice of one of three different Pokémon at the start of the player's adventures; these three are often labeled "starter Pokémon". Players can choose a Grass-type, a Fire-type, or a Water-type, Pokémon indigenous to that particular region.^[9] For example, in Pokémon Red and Blue, the player has the choice of starting with Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle. The exception to this rule is Pokémon Yellow, where players are given a Pikachu, an Electric-type mouse Pokémon, famous for being the mascot of the Pokémon media franchise; in this game, however, the three starter Pokémon from Red and Blue can be obtained during the quest by a single player, something that is not possible in any other installment of the franchise.^[10]

Another consistent aspect is that the player's rival will always choose as his or her starter, the one that has a type advantage over the player's chosen Pokémon. For instance, if the player picks grass-type Bulbasaur, the rival will always pick fire-type Charmander. This does not affect the first battle between the rivals, as they can only use "normal" type attacks at this point, meaning that they cannot exploit weaknesses. The exception to this is again Pokémon Yellow, in which the rival picks Eevee, a normal-type with multiple evolutions.

List of main Pokémon games

Main article: List of Pokémon video games

Handheld games

• Generation I (Game Boy)
  • Pokémon Green (^JPN 1996)
  • Pokémon Red and Pokémon Blue (^JPN 1996)
  • Pokémon Yellow (^JPN 1998)
• Generation II (Game Boy Color)
  • Pokémon Gold and Pokémon Silver (^JPN 1999)
  • Pokémon Crystal (^JPN 2000)
• Generation III (Game Boy Advance)
  • Pokémon Ruby and Pokémon Sapphire (^JPN 2002)
  • Pokémon FireRed and Pokémon LeafGreen (^JPN 2004)
  • Pokémon Emerald (^JPN 2005)
  • Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red Rescue Team (^JPN 2005)
• Generation IV (Nintendo DS)
  • Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Blue Rescue Team (^JPN 2005)
  • Pokémon Ranger (^US 2007)
  • Pokémon Diamond and Pokémon Pearl (^JPN 2006)
  • Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness (^US 2008)
  • Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia (^US 2008)
  • Pokémon Platinum (^JPN 2008)

Console games

• Generation I (Nintendo 64)
  • Pokémon Stadium (^JPN 1998)
• Generation II (Nintendo 64)
  • Pokémon Stadium 2 (^JPN 1999) known as Pokémon Stadium in US and Europe (^US 2000)
  • Pokémon Stadium Kin Gin (^JPN 2000) known as Pokémon Stadium 2 in US and Europe (^US 2001)
• Generation III (Nintendo GameCube)
  • Pokémon Colosseum (^JPN 2003)
  • Pokémon XD: Gale of Darkness (^JPN 2005)
• Generation IV (Wii)
  • Pokémon Battle Revolution (^JPN 2006)
  • My Pokémon Ranch (^JPN 2008)

Pokémon in other games

In the Super Smash Bros. series, Pikachu, Ivysaur, Squirtle, Charizard, Jigglypuff, Pichu, Mewtwo and Lucario are playable characters. Pikachu and Jigglypuff are introduced in Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 64, and are also featured in Super Smash Bros. Melee for the Nintendo GameCube, alongside Pichu and Mewtwo. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Mewtwo and Pichu are not featured, although Squirtle, Ivysaur, and Charizard make their first playable appearances as part of the Pokémon Trainer character, while Lucario appears as a separate character. Rayquaza is also featured as a boss enemy. The series also features Poké Balls as items, which, when used by a player, make a random Pokémon appear, with various effects on the game.

"Unobtainable" Pokémon

Four Pokémon, Mew, Celebi, Jirachi and Deoxys, are extremely rare and were nearly impossible to get in the Game Boy Advance era. Pokémon Diamond and Pearl added three new extremely rare Pokémon: Darkrai, Shaymin and Arceus. They are obtained by using the Mystery Gift function; in some cases, exploiting a glitch in the game itself; or directly from Nintendo at promotional events. These Pokémon can be obtained by using a GameShark or similar cheating device like Action Replay. Players are not required to own these Pokémon, among others, in order to have a complete Pokédex.

• Mew can be found in the Red, Blue, and Yellow versions using the "Mew glitch". In addition, it is possible to get an Old Sea Chart in Pokémon Emerald at one of Nintendo's promotional events and use this to travel to Faraway Island (known as World's Edge Island in Japan), where Mew can be caught. On September 30, 2006, Mew was also given out at Toys "R" Us stores throughout the United States^[11] in recognition of the release of the new movie, Pokémon: Lucario and the Mystery of Mew. A similar event at Toys "R" Us stores across Britain took place in August 2007. Several of these promotional events also took place in major shopping malls in Australia and the United States. It has also been discovered that Mew is also obtainable in the WiiWare title, My Pokémon Ranch. If 999 Pokémon are sent to the Ranch, Hayley will bring a Mew to the Ranch and is able to be traded in return for an egg from the Wii to a Pokémon Diamond or Pokémon Pearl game.

• Celebi can be found through the use of the GS ball (only obtainable in the Japanese version of Pokémon Crystal through a cell phone network service), which can be placed in a shrine in Ilex Forest to summon it, by manipulating a glitch, or by using a cheating device. It is also available in the Japanese Pokémon Colosseum bonus disc, which was available with pre-orders. For the Gold, Silver and Crystal games, Celebi has been provided as a promotional Pokémon at special events, but it was not obtainable outside of Japan for the Game Boy Advance generation with the exception of a promotional 10th Pokémon Journey Across America.

• Jirachi can only be obtained legitimately with the Pokémon Colosseum bonus disc (which was available with pre-orders) in North America, which allows a player to trade this Pokémon to the Ruby and Sapphire games. PAL region gamers can get it by finishing Pokémon Channel, after which Jirachi can be downloaded to the GBA games.

• Deoxys can be caught on Birth Island to the south of Kanto in the FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald versions, provided the player has an Aurora Ticket, which was a bonus for pre-ordering a ticket to see the 7th movie in Japan. In America, the ticket was given at Pokémon Rocks America 2004 and on Halloween 2004 at the former Pokémon Center. Europeans were able to find it by a promotion called "The Hunt for Deoxys." Nintendo of Europe gave out tickets to those who mailed their games in. Due to the universal encoding of a Game Boy Advance, American cartridges can receive Deoxys too. An event took place at the Houston Space Center that gave out Deoxys on March 10 through 19 of 2006. Deoxys was also given away to owners of Pokémon Diamond and Pearl as a bonus for pre-ordering a ticket to see the tenth Pokémon movie. This Deoxys came in the exclusive Cherish Ball and had a unique moveset. Deoxys was also given away to Pokémon Diamond and Pearl owners on the weekends of June 20–22, and June 27–29, 2008 at local GameStops in America.

• Ho-Oh and Lugia are also relatively unobtainable in FireRed, LeafGreen and Emerald. The Pokémon can be caught on Navel Rock to the south of Kanto if the player has a Mystic Ticket, which can obtained by using Mystery Gift near a Joyspot. Mystic Tickets were also made available to US players at the Nintendo World grand opening in New York City on May 14, 2005. When Pokémon Colosseum was released, players could also catch Ho-Oh by Snagging and purifying all 48 Shadow Pokémon and then beating Mt. Battle with an in-game team. In Colosseum's sequel, Pokémon XD, Lugia is prominently featured and can be caught within the game, then can be traded to a GBA game after purification. Ho-Oh and Lugia were also among the top twenty Pokémon given out in the European Pokémon 10th anniversary tour, held in 2006.

• Manaphy can be obtained in Diamond and Pearl with use of the games Pokémon Ranger and Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia. After each game is completed, a special mission may be offered to maintain a Manaphy egg which the player can then transfer to Diamond or Pearl to hatch there. Additionally, on Saturday, September 29, 2007, Toys 'R' Us held another event to distribute Manaphy, in promotion of the film Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea. This particular Manaphy had a special moveset and was caught in a Cherish Ball. It also held the item Red Scarf.

• Darkrai can be obtained in Diamond and Pearl with the use of the event item Membership Pass. This takes the player to Newmoon Island, where Darkrai can be found. Darkrai was also distributed at movie theatres in Japan to promote the movie Pokémon: The Rise of Darkrai. Keeping in trend with previous promotions, the Pokémon Darkrai was distributed at Toys 'R' Us stores in the United States on May 31 and June 1, 2008, also in promotion of Pokémon: The Rise of Darkrai. Darkrai is also obtained by completing a mission in Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia.

• Shaymin was only obtainable in Japan on July 6 (premiere) and July 19 (official date). Anyone with a Nintendo DS and Diamond or Pearl were able to receive Shaymin in the film hall.

Other promotions

Nintendo has produced modified versions of other, not so rare Pokémon to serve as promotional icons. One of these was a surfing Pikachu, which was originally available only through a Nintendo Power contest. However, it was later provided as an unlockable secret in Pokémon Stadium, Pokémon Box and Pokémon Battle Revolution. Similarly, for a short time in Japan, there was a giveaway providing diving Pikachu. Flying Pikachu were also given away at Journey Across America in New York City stop.

• On November 8-9, 2008 Nintendo ran a level 50 Dragonite promotion. The reason backing this release was because, though not tournament-legal, Dragonite was unable to be used in tournaments, therefore Nintendo decided to give tournament-legal Dragonites for future tournaments.

Codes and glitches

Many glitches can be triggered in the Pokémon games, especially in Red, Blue and Yellow.^[12] These glitches allow players to duplicate Pokémon or items, catch unobtainable Pokémon, and accomplish otherwise impossible feats.

Additionally, a vast number of fake glitches and codes for the Pokémon games (again, especially for Red and Blue) exist. The creation of such codes is often used to trick credulous players into deleting their save file, releasing their Pokémon, or performing other supposed requirements. Many of these glitches involve the catching of unobtainable (entirely fake) Pokémon; in many cases, the credibility of such codes was increased by falsified screenshots from the in-game Pokédex. Essentially, all of these codes have been proven false, and, since then, numbers of false glitches for later games have dropped significantly. This is probably a result of the relative stability of the later games' code, which is less susceptible to the glitches that were rampant in previous versions. A glitch in the early Pokémon games is Missingno., a Pokémon found on the coast of Cinnabar Island. It is apparently a missing variable in the percentile odds of catching certain Pokémon. If the player "catches" this glitch, it will distort many of the game's functions, such as the Hall of Fame data, although it will most likely not harm the save file. The name of your character changes what image is used for Missingno., varying from black rectangles to a fossilized skeleton of a Pokémon to a level 255 Mewtwo.^[13]

Additionally, a glitch for catching the supposedly uncatchable Mew and all other Pokémons has been uncovered, in two different ways that have yet to be found to ruin the game.^[14] Cloning glitches have been also uncovered in several games, like at the battle tower in Pokémon Emerald. These allow the player to duplicate Pokémon by following a series of steps. By some players, however, this is considered cheating. There is also the possibility of corrupting or erasing the game file, with no way to restore it. Most glitches are banned from tournaments.

Impact

A subculture exists which is devoted to the study of Pokémon battling and strategy, usually on research centers around Internet bulletin boards. As well, multiple methods of online Pokémon battling exist, such as linkable Game Boy emulators, an IRC channel based programs: GSBot and RSBot, as well as the independent program Pokémon Netbattle, and another program called Shoddy Battle.

Guinness World Records awarded the Pokémon series eight records in Guinness World Records: Gamer's Edition 2008, including "Most Successful RPG Series of All Time", "Game Series With the Most Spin-Off Movies" and "Most Photosensitive Epileptic Seizures Caused By A TV Show".

References